Muslim Public School Sued by ACLU Intimidates Opponents

The Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy in Minnesota is being sued by the ACLU for violating the separation of church and state. In an article entitled "TiZA vs. the search for truth" Katherine Kersten writes:

"The battle over the role of Islam in a Minnesota public school is heating up again in a federal courtroom in St. Paul. The conflict began in January 2009, when the ACLU of Minnesota sued Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy -- a K-8 charter school with campuses in Inver Grove Heights and Blaine -- for violating constitutional prohibitions against government endorsement of religion.

TiZA since has fought tooth and nail -- erecting procedural barriers to prevent the ACLU from investigating what goes on behind its doors. The school's tactics have gone far beyond the usual rough-and-tumble of lawyers in our adversary system. Its chief tool has been attempted intimidation of all who would draw back the curtain on its secrets." http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentary/105067899.html

The school is mired in controversy and shares the same premises as the headquarters of the Muslim American Society in Minnesota, a wing of the Muslim Brotherhood in the United States.

Chuck Samuelson of the ACLU stated that ""It's a theocratic school…It is as plain as the substantial nose on my face."

According to a 2009 article by Katherine Kersten:

"The ACLU suit may reveal a Minnesota public school that is funneling state funds to an activist Islamic organization, and has connections to a controversial imam whose mosque is under scrutiny in the case of the disappearing Twin Cities Somali youths.

TiZA is housed in the headquarters of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota (MAS-MN). The school and MAS-MN have "operated hand-in-glove" since "the moment they were incorporated on the same day by the same person," according to an ACLU court filing.

MAS-MN seeks "to reestablish Islam as a total way of life." Its website has featured "enlightening information" about Islam -- removed after media reports -- including "Regularly make the intention to go on jihad with the ambition to die as a martyr."

TiZA's byzantine entwinement with MAS-MN and other Muslim organizations raises serious questions -- both of constitutionality and of potential misuse of taxpayer dollars."

For example, Imam Asad Zaman is TiZA's principal, and has served recently as MAS-MN vice president and spokesperson. In what the ACLU calls a "conflict of interest," he also controls the books of the holding company that owns the MAS-MN building, which his school rents."

That Muslim American Society's involvement in a tax payer funded public school is extremely troubling. The ACLU lawsuit sets a precedent and it's success or failure will be one way to determine how far Islamism will be allowed to take hold in the United States educational system.